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Holy bad beekeeper batman

The past few years we have had a number of large California beekeeping operation set bees all over our country, mostly with no regard to our locations. In that time we have entertaint a number of calls from land owners complaining about the bees on their property. We explain that they are not our bees, that they are from California, and that the land owner should get in contact with the owner of the bees. The Land owner usually tells us that the beekeeper didn't leave a name of number and that they assumed that the bees were ours.
At any rate, we have been getting quite tired of being "sat on" by these guys but really haven't had any legal recoarse as our state has no apiary registry ect. But charma is so entertaining.
I got a call from our Local P.D. yesterday asking for assistance in a "situation". Not sure what these guys were thinking. The flatbed was a 2ton style truck with about 100 colonies on it.http://www.alamosanews.com/V2_news_a...=13673&page=72

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

With more & more people going in to bees this is just going to get worse.
Squatting on private property is generally trespassing. Encroaching on territory is unenforceable, it used to be a matter of mutual discretion and benefit.
Some of these guys are masters at it: "The hired man put them in the wrong place, what's it going to take to stay?" What easier way is there to find owner of remote property? These sound like places with no fences or locks.

You know, after they put up bob war fences all over the country, the free ranger cowboys went in to bees. Don't have to cut the fence any more to get through.

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

We are lucky in that here the commercial beek community is pretty small and we all work together to keep from overlapping on yards. There is the occasional new guy that violates these unwritten rules but they usually are not around long.

I bet it is a pain out there especially if people are showing up with no contracts and moving like gypsies from one location to the other without regard to the local beeks. However, in this case it sounds like it was one of your own who was doing the ugly and not some out of state guy.

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

this is a temporary problem

migratory beekeeping is a relic of the past and present when cheap oil was the norm. once diesel hits $8 a gallon which should occur in the next decade things like Walmart (60% product imported from OUS) and migratory beekeeping will become extinct. like in the EU where migratory beekeeping is minimal no one will drive across country with bees. the almond boom is also oil dependent and mostly exported over seas so that demand will also wane.

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

We have good cooperation amongst WI beeks in our area too but there are always some who ignore the "rules". In your case Brent, it is nice to see the "bad guys" get their commupance and nice to see the good guys save the day. Nice article.

Bud your "gold" analogy is an apt one, but seems to be leaving the consumer out, and the prices they are willing to pay for a desired commodity. Sticking with gold, there are few items more expensive to mine or more expensive to ship, yet the demand and hence the price is high.
Who knows what the end consumer is willing to pay for almonds. Certainly they have shown in the recent past they will pay much more than the current price, which still supports good pollination fees.

As for international trade going away, I seriously doubt that will happen. Of course, as shipping prices rise, more local production is encouraged but regional specialties will always find an international market, as they have for eons prior to oil being the transport fuel of choice. As of today, oil is still the 'cheapest' form of transport. When that changes, world trade will adapt.
Sheri

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

Originally Posted by Bud Dingler

this is a temporary problem

migratory beekeeping is a relic of the past and present when cheap oil was the norm. once diesel hits $8 a gallon which should occur in the next decade things like Walmart (60% product imported from OUS) and migratory beekeeping will become extinct. like in the EU where migratory beekeeping is minimal no one will drive across country with bees. the almond boom is also oil dependent and mostly exported over seas so that demand will also wane.

this rush to the pot of gold rainbow will not last.....

Until the population of the world starts to go down or we find away to not need food ,there will be migratory beekeeping. Local beekeepers could never supply enough bees to poillinate the large crops .

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

South of me a guy out of florida dropped 20 pallets and left. The farmer went and torched them all. When they came back he called the sherrifs Dept and got fined for trespassing on top of it. He put them smack dap in the driveway to the hayfield.

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

The main problem here is the Canoila grower shopped for the cheapest bees, he had, at one time couple different keepers then this Calif guy got his panties in a jam because other beekeepers were getting more per hive, From there it all went down hill. If you want to rent bees in that toxic valley for $55 bee my guest.

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

Say what?

Early Thursday after the situation was reported, photographs were made of the scene by Valley Courier staff writer Julia Wilson, clearly show the doors on the hives located on the truck were open. Rick Perry, a bystander and former bee keeper from Las Vegas, Nev., said in his experience the doors on the individual hives should have been closed during the transportation of the bees from one location to another.

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

Just a thought here, but if someone called complaining of bees on their property couldn't it be considered a hive removal? I can't just go storing my property on someones land and expect it to stay there. I would think the ownus would be on the person with the hives, not with the land. It is easier to find out who owns land than it is to find out who owns a wooden box full of bees.

If someone called with hives that they could prove were on their land that they didn't want there and had no id on them to contact the owners, I'd take them.

100 different excuses

Our truck broke down we had no choice. We'll move them as soon as the honey flow is over.

The McDonalds thing is just one of the joys of minimum wage employees.

I didn't see this but heard it from the owner:
Missing semi of bees from ND. Days go by. Phone call from a casino in Las Vegas area "You have a trailer of bees sitting in our lot please come get them." No tractor. Owners go out to see and lo and behold there is the trailer, bees, and all the wheels and tires removed from the trailer! Those drivers and workers expect to get paid and get a little rumpled when they are not.

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

>>Alamosa Police Lt. Duane Oaks said Thursday the flatbed truck was left overnight in the parking lot and when the bees began their morning routine the situation was reported to police. The truck, operated by John Lopatkiew of Blanca was removed by South Side Towing shortly after 12-noon on Thursday and was picked up by Lopatkiew later in the afternoon. But all the bees did not make the trip to the tow yard.

So the truck was abandoned full of bees?

>>said in his experience the doors on the individual hives should have been closed during the transportation of the bees from one location to another.

Re: Holy bad beekeeper batman

It's funny how the media quotes some former beekeeper and makes him sound like a person whose opinion we should respect. The important thing to remember about Rick Perry is that he used to own bees. He probably cooked them after he forgot to open the doors after transpotation. Lesson number 1 in moving bees is never ever shut them in, cause you never know what will happen during transport. You need to be able to take nets off if it's too hot, find a nice parking lot etc...

Nobody here knows the circumstances that led to the fellow deciding to leave his truck parked where he did. I'm pretty sure, although I don't know, that this was not in the original plan. This was plan B. Why he did not get them first thing in the morning, well that's plan C. I don't think we need to be too harsh on the fellow. It's events such as these which will make him reconsider his paln A, B and C. He will unlikely return unless of course he is a slow learner.